KR101857340B1 - Substrate processing apparatus, method of manufacturing semiconductor device, and recording medium - Google Patents

Abstract

A technique of forming a high-quality film using plasma is provided. 1. A substrate processing apparatus comprising a processing chamber containing a substrate mounting table on which a substrate is mounted and a plasma generating section for bringing the gas supplied into the processing chamber into a plasma state, wherein the plasma generating section includes a plasma generating chamber Wherein the plasma generating conductor includes a plurality of main conductor portions extending in the mainstream direction of the gas in the plasma production chamber and a plurality of connection portions for electrically connecting the plurality of main conductor portions to each other And a conductor portion.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD [0001] The present invention relates to a substrate processing apparatus, a method of manufacturing a semiconductor device, and a recording medium using the substrate processing apparatus,

The present invention relates to a substrate processing apparatus and a method of manufacturing a semiconductor device.

2. Description of the Related Art Generally, in a semiconductor device manufacturing process, a substrate processing apparatus that performs a process such as a film forming process on a substrate such as a wafer is used. As a process process performed by the substrate processing apparatus, for example, there is a film forming process by an alternate supply method. In the film forming process by the alternate feeding method, the raw material gas supplying step, the purge step, the reactive gas supplying step, and the purge step are set to one cycle for the substrate to be treated, and this cycle is repeated a predetermined number of times (n cycles) Thereby forming a film on the substrate.

[0003] As a substrate processing apparatus for performing such a film forming process, various gases (raw material gas, reactive gas, or purge gas) are sequentially supplied onto the substrate to be processed from the upper side thereof on the surface of the substrate, The film is formed on the substrate by reacting the gas and the reactive gas. In order to increase the reaction efficiency with the source gas, there is a configuration in which the reaction gas is brought into a plasma state when the reaction gas is supplied (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2011-222960

However, in such a device type, it is sometimes required to improve the film quality by further increasing the efficiency of plasma use.

Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a technique for forming a high-quality film using plasma.

According to one aspect of the present invention,

A substrate stacking table on which a substrate is stacked,

A processing chamber containing the substrate mounting table,

A gas supply unit for supplying gas into the process chamber,

And a plasma generator for bringing the gas supplied from the gas supply unit into the process chamber into a plasma state,

Lt; / RTI >

Wherein the plasma generating unit comprises:

A plasma generation chamber in which the gas supply unit serves as a channel for gas supplied into the process chamber,

And a plasma generation conductor formed by a conductor arranged to surround the plasma generation chamber

Lt; / RTI >

Wherein the plasma generating conductor comprises:

A plurality of main body portions extending in the mainstream direction of the gas in the plasma generation chamber,

And a plurality of connection conductor portions for electrically connecting the plurality of main conductor portions to each other

Is provided.

According to the present invention, a plasma can be used to form a high-quality film.

1 is a schematic diagram showing a schematic configuration of an ICP coil according to the present invention and its comparative example, wherein (a) shows a schematic configuration example in the first embodiment of the present invention, and (b) 1 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration example.
2 is a conceptual diagram showing a schematic configuration example of a main part of a substrate processing apparatus according to the first embodiment of the present invention.
Fig. 3 is a diagram showing a structural example of a gas supply unit used in the substrate processing apparatus according to the first embodiment of the present invention, wherein (a) is a perspective view thereof and (b) is a side sectional view thereof.
Fig. 4 is a side cross-sectional view showing an AA section in Fig. 2, showing a detailed configuration example of a main portion of a substrate processing apparatus according to the first embodiment of the present invention.
5 is a side cross-sectional view showing a cross-sectional view taken along line BB in Fig. 2, showing a detailed structural example of a main portion of a substrate processing apparatus according to the first embodiment of the present invention.
Fig. 6 is a plan view showing a cross-sectional view taken along the line CC in Fig. 4, showing a detailed structural example of the main part of the substrate processing apparatus according to the first embodiment of the present invention.
Fig. 7 is a plan view showing another cross-sectional structural example of the main part of the substrate processing apparatus according to the first embodiment of the present invention, and showing a cross-section CC in Fig.
8 is a conceptual diagram schematically showing an example of the configuration of a gas piping in the substrate processing apparatus according to the first embodiment of the present invention.
Fig. 9 is a diagram showing a configuration example of a plasma generating portion (ICP coil) used in the substrate processing apparatus according to the first embodiment of the present invention, wherein (a) is a perspective view thereof and Fig. 9 (b) is a side sectional view thereof.
10 is a flowchart showing a substrate processing process according to the first embodiment of the present invention.
11 is a flowchart showing the details of the relative position movement processing operation performed in the film formation step in Fig.
12 is a flowchart showing the details of the gas supply / exhaust process operation performed in the film formation process in FIG.
13 is a schematic diagram showing a schematic configuration example of a plasma generating portion (ICP coil) used in the substrate processing apparatus according to the second embodiment of the present invention.
14 is a schematic diagram showing a schematic configuration example of a plasma generating portion (ICP coil) according to a third embodiment of the present invention.
15 is a schematic diagram showing another configuration example of the plasma generating section according to the third embodiment of the present invention.
16 is a schematic diagram showing another configuration example of the plasma generation unit according to the third embodiment of the present invention.
17 is a schematic diagram showing an example of the configuration of a plasma generating portion (ICP coil) used in the substrate processing apparatus according to the fourth embodiment of the present invention, wherein (a) shows an example thereof, and (b) Fig.
18 is a side sectional view showing a schematic configuration example of a plasma generating portion (ICP coil) used in the substrate processing apparatus according to the fifth embodiment of the present invention.

<First Embodiment of Present Invention>

Hereinafter, a first embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

(1) Overview of the first embodiment of the present invention

First, the outline of the first embodiment of the present invention will be described in comparison with the prior art.

In the first embodiment, a substrate is processed using a single-piece substrate processing apparatus.

As a substrate to be processed, for example, a semiconductor wafer substrate (hereinafter simply referred to as &quot; wafer &quot;) in which a semiconductor device (semiconductor device) is embedded can be mentioned.

As the processing to be performed on the substrate, etching, ashing, film forming processing, and the like can be mentioned. In the first embodiment, film forming processing is performed by alternate feeding method in particular.

In the film forming process by the alternate feeding method, a raw material gas, a purge gas, a reactive gas, and a purge gas are sequentially supplied onto the substrate to be processed from the upper side thereof on the surface of the substrate, The reaction gas is reacted to form a film on the substrate, and when the reaction gas is supplied in order to increase the reaction efficiency with the source gas, the reaction gas is brought into a plasma state.

It is conceivable that the reaction gas is brought into the plasma state by the dielectric coupling method. This is because, in the dielectric coupling method, it is possible to easily obtain a high-density plasma as compared with the capacitance coupling method.

Here, the generation of the dielectric-coupled plasma (hereinafter referred to as &quot; ICP &quot;) in the comparative example will be described.

Fig. 1 (b) is a schematic diagram showing a schematic structure of an ICP coil in a comparative example.

As shown in the drawing, in the comparative example, the coil 451 is wound around the plasma generation chamber 410 through which the gas to be put into the plasma state passes, and a high-frequency large current is passed through the coil 451. By flowing a large current, a magnetic field is generated in the plasma generation chamber 410, thereby generating ICP.

In the single-substrate processing apparatus, various gases (raw material gas, reactive gas, or purge gas) are supplied to the wafer W to be processed on the surface of the wafer W from the upper side thereof. Specifically, in order to move the wafer W so as to pass through the feed zone of the feed gas and the feed zone of the reaction gas in order, and to prevent the feed gas from reacting with the reaction gas, A supply region of the purge gas is disposed between the supply region and the gas supply region. Then, various gases are supplied to the wafers W from the upper side in the respective gas supply regions. In order to avoid interference with other gas supply regions, electric power is applied from the upper side to the coil 451 for bringing the reaction gas into a plasma state in the substrate processing apparatus having such a structure, .

However, when power is applied to the helical coil 451 from the upper side, a conductor 452 extending from the lower end of the coil 451 toward the upper side is required. The conductor 452 and the coil 451 in the case of the first embodiment. The magnetic field generated by the coil 451 is canceled by the magnetic field generated by the conductor 452. As a result, the plasma generated in the plasma generating chamber 410 is made nonuniform And the like. For this reason, in the ICP coil in the comparative example, there is a fear that it is difficult to save the plasma of the reaction gas in a space-saving manner while maintaining a high plasma density.

With respect to this point, the inventors of the present application have repeatedly studied to obtain ICP coils having a novel structure different from those in the comparative examples.

Fig. 1 (a) is a schematic diagram showing a schematic structure of an ICP coil in the first embodiment of the present invention. Fig.

The ICP coil in the illustrated example functions as a plasma generating portion for bringing a reaction gas supplied to the wafer W into a plasma state and includes a plasma generating chamber 410 serving as a passage through which a reaction gas to be put into a plasma state passes, And a plasma generating conductor 420 constituted by a conductor disposed so as to surround the plasma generating chamber 410. That is, the reaction gas flowing in the plasma generating chamber 410 passes through the ring of the annular body formed by the plasma generating conductor 420.

The plasma generating conductor 420 includes a plurality of main conductor sections 421 extending in the mainstream direction of the gas in the plasma generating chamber 410 and a connecting conductor section 422 for electrically connecting the main conductor sections 421 to each other ). That is, the conductor constituting the plasma generating conductor 420 includes a conductor portion serving as the main conductor portion 421 and a conductor portion serving as the connection conductor portion 422.

The connecting conductor portion 422 is disposed at a position where the lower ends of the main conductor portion 421 are connected to each other and at a position where the upper ends of the main conductor portion 421 are connected to each other. By providing the main conductor portion 421 and the connecting conductor portion 422, the plasma generating conductor 420 is arranged in a waveform shape in which the conductor is shaken in the mainstream direction of the gas in the plasma generating chamber 410.

An input conductor 431 for applying electric power to the plasma generating conductor 420 is provided in one of the main conductor sections 421 located at the conductor ends of the plasma generating conductor 420 among the plurality of main conductor sections 421 Respectively. An output conductor 432 for extracting the electric power given to the plasma generating conductor 420 is connected to the other main body portion 421 located at the conductor end of the plasma generating conductor 420. The input conductor 431 and the output conductor 432 are connected to a matching unit and a high-frequency power source, not shown.

In the ICP coil having such a configuration, the reaction gas flowing in the plasma generation chamber 410 is converted into a plasma state through the input conductor 431 and the output conductor 432 with respect to the plasma generating conductor 420, Current is applied. When a current is applied, a magnetic field is generated around the plasma generating conductor 420.

Here, the plasma generating conductor 420 is disposed so as to surround the plasma generating chamber 410 and has a plurality of main conductor sections 421. That is, around the plasma generation chamber 410, a plurality of main body portions 421 are arranged side by side.

Therefore, when a current is applied to the plasma generating conductor 420, the magnetic field generated by each of the main conductor portions 421 is synthesized within the range of the region where the plurality of main conductor portions 421 are disposed, Thereby forming a composite magnetic field. When the reaction gas passes through the plasma generation chamber 410 in which the composite magnetic field is formed, the reaction gas is excited by the synthetic magnetic field to become a plasma state.

Thus, in the ICP coil in the first embodiment, the reaction gas passing through the plasma generation chamber 410 is put into a plasma state.

The input conductor 431 and the output conductor 432 for applying a current to the plasma generating conductor 420 are connected to the main conductor portion 421 located at the conductor end of the plasma generating conductor 420 . That is, it is possible to dispose the input conductor 431 and the output conductor 432 from the main conductor portion 421 as they are upward.

Therefore, in the ICP coil according to the first embodiment, unlike the comparative example (the ICP coil described in FIG. 1B), the conductor 452 extending from the lower end of the coil 451 to the upper side and the coil 451 It is not necessary to sufficiently secure the space S between the substrate and the substrate. In addition, if the plurality of main body portions 421 are evenly arranged so as to surround the plasma generation chamber 410, the plasma generated in the plasma generation chamber 410 is not uneven. Furthermore, since the reaction gas is brought into the plasma state by the dielectric coupling method using the composite magnetic field formed in the plasma generation chamber 410, it becomes easy to obtain a high-density plasma.

In other words, according to the ICP coil in the first embodiment, by setting the plasma generating conductor 420 to a new configuration different from that of the comparative example, it is possible to save the plasma of the reaction gas while maintaining a high plasma density in a space-saving manner .

(2) Configuration of substrate processing apparatus according to the first embodiment

Next, a specific configuration of the substrate processing apparatus according to the first embodiment will be described with reference to Figs. 2 to 9. Fig.

2 is a conceptual diagram showing a schematic configuration example of a main part of the substrate processing apparatus according to the first embodiment. 3 is a conceptual diagram showing a configuration example of a gas supply unit used in the substrate processing apparatus according to the first embodiment. 4 is a side cross-sectional view showing the A-A cross section of Fig. 5 is a side cross-sectional view showing the B-B cross section in Fig. 6 is a plan view showing a cross section taken along line C-C of Fig. 7 is a plan view showing another structural example of a cross section taken along the line C-C in Fig. 8 is a conceptual diagram schematically showing an example of the configuration of a gas piping in the substrate processing apparatus according to the first embodiment. Fig. 9 is a conceptual diagram showing a configuration example of a plasma generation section (ICP coil) used in the substrate processing apparatus according to the first embodiment.

(Processing vessel)

The substrate processing apparatus described in the first embodiment includes a processing container (not shown). The processing container is constituted as a sealed container by a metal material such as aluminum (Al) or stainless steel (SUS), for example. Further, on the side surface of the processing container, a substrate loading / unloading port (not shown) is formed, and the wafer is carried through the substrate loading / unloading port. A gas exhaust system such as a vacuum pump or a pressure controller, not shown, is connected to the processing vessel, and the inside of the processing vessel can be adjusted to a predetermined pressure by using the gas exhaust system.

(Substrate stack)

As shown in Fig. 2, a substrate mounting table 10 on which a wafer W is mounted is provided inside the processing container. The substrate mounting table 10 is formed, for example, in the shape of a disk, and a plurality of wafers W are stacked on the upper surface (substrate mounting surface) thereof at equal intervals in the circumferential direction. The substrate mounting table 10 contains a heater 11 as a heating source and the temperature of the wafer W can be maintained at a predetermined temperature by using the heater 11. [ In the illustrated example, five wafers W are configured to be stacked. However, the number of stacked wafers W may be set appropriately. For example, if the number of stacked sheets is large, an improvement in processing throughput can be expected. If the number of stacked sheets is small, the size of the substrate stacking table 10 can be suppressed. The substrate mounting surface of the substrate mounting table 10 is preferably made of a material such as quartz or alumina because it directly contacts the wafer W. [

The substrate mounting table 10 is configured to be rotatable in a state in which a plurality of wafers W are stacked. Concretely, the substrate mounting table 10 is connected to a rotation driving mechanism 12 having a rotation axis near the center of the disk, and is rotationally driven by the rotation driving mechanism 12. [ It is conceivable that the rotation drive mechanism 12 is constituted by, for example, a rotary bearing for rotatably supporting the substrate mounting table 10, a drive source represented by an electric motor, and the like.

It is also possible to move the relative positions of the wafers W on the substrate mounting table 10 and the cartridge head 20 to be described later The cartridge head 20 may be rotated. Unlike the case where the cartridge head 20 is rotated, the constitution of the gas piping or the like to be described later can be suppressed from being complicated when the substrate mounting table 10 is rotatable. By rotating the cartridge head 20, on the other hand, the moment of inertia acting on the wafer W can be suppressed, and the rotational speed can be increased, as compared with the case where the substrate table 10 is rotated.

(Cartridge head)

Further, in the interior of the processing container, a cartridge head 20 is provided above the substrate mounting table 10. The cartridge head 20 supplies various gases (raw material gas, reactive gas, or purge gas) from the upper side thereof to the wafer W on the substrate mounting table 10, and exhausts the supplied various gases to the upper side .

The cartridge head 20 includes a ceiling portion 21 formed in a disk shape and a cylindrical outer tube portion 21 extending downward from an outer peripheral edge portion of the ceiling portion 21, A cylindrical inner cylinder portion 23 disposed inside the outer cylinder portion 22; a cylindrical central cylinder portion 24 disposed in correspondence with the rotation axis of the substrate mounting table 10; And a plurality of gas supply units 25 provided on the lower side of the ceiling portion 21 between the central cylinder portion 23 and the central cylinder portion 24. The outer tube 22 is provided with an exhaust port 26 which communicates with a space formed between the outer tube 22 and the inner tube 23. All of the ceiling portion 21, the outer cylinder portion 22, the inner cylinder portion 23, the gas supply units 25 and the exhaust port 26 constituting the cartridge head 20 are made of, for example, aluminum And is made of a metal material such as stainless steel (SUS).

In the illustrated example, twelve gas supply units 25 are provided in the cartridge head 20. However, the number of gas supply units 25 to be installed is not limited to this, The number of gas species to be supplied to the gas-liquid separator, the processing throughput, and the like. For example, if the film W is subjected to the film forming process in which the raw material gas supplying step, the purge step, the reaction gas supplying step, and the purge step are performed in one cycle, as will be described in detail later, The number of gas supply units 25 corresponding to a multiple of four may be provided. However, in order to improve the processing throughput, it is more preferable that the total installation number is large.

(Gas supply unit)

Here, the gas supply units 25 in the cartridge head 20 will be described in more detail.

The gas supply unit 25 is for forming a gas flow path for performing upward supply / upward exhaust of various gases to the wafer W. 3 (a), the gas supply unit 25 includes a first member 251 formed in a rectangular parallelepiped shape, and a second member 251 formed in a plate shape and provided under the first member 251 And a second member 252. The second member 252 has a planar shape that is wider than the plane shape of the first member 251. Specifically, for example, the planar shape of the second member 252 with respect to the first member 251 having a rectangular planar shape is such that the one end edge side in the longitudinal direction of the first member 251 is narrow, Like shape or a trapezoidal shape which is widened toward the front side. 3 (b), the gas supply unit 25 has the first member 251 and the second member 252, and the gas supply unit 25 has the one end edge in the longitudinal direction of the first member 251, A corner portion 251a is formed between the first member 251 and the second member 252 as seen from the side of the first member 251 and the side surface of the second member 252 is convex upwardly projected.

3 (a) and 3 (b), the gas supply unit 25 has, for example, a gas supply path 253 formed of a through-hole having a substantially rectangular shape. The gas supply path 253 is formed to penetrate through the first member 251 and the second member 252 and serves as a gas flow path for supplying gas to the wafer W from above. That is, the gas supply unit 25 includes a gas supply path 253 serving as a gas flow path, a first member 251 disposed so as to surround the upper side portion of the gas supply path 253, And a second member 252 arranged to surround the lower side portion of the first member 253. The first member 251 and the gas supply path 253 are not necessarily required to have a flat rectangular shape and may be formed in other planar shapes (for example, an elliptical shape or a fan shape).

As shown in Fig. 4, the gas supply unit 25 configured as described above is hung from the ceiling portion 21 of the cartridge head 20 so that a plurality of gas supply units 25 are arranged at predetermined intervals. The plurality of gas supply units 25 are arranged such that the lower surface of the second member 252 of each gas supply unit 25 faces the wafer W on the substrate mounting table 10 and the lower surface of the second member 252 faces the wafer W on the substrate mounting table 10 And is arranged so as to be parallel to the loading surface of the wafer W.

By arranging in this way, each adjacent gas supply unit 25 is configured such that the edge of the second member 252 in each of the adjacent gas supply units 25 has a gas exhaust for exhausting the gas supplied to the wafer W upwardly Thereby constituting a part of the hole 254.

The wall surfaces of the first member 251 and the upper surface of the wide portion of the second member 252 of each of the adjoining gas supply units 25 are arranged such that the gas passing through the gas exhaust holes 254 And constitute a part of the exhaust buffer chamber 255 which is a space for staying. More specifically, the top view of the exhaust buffer chamber 255 is constituted by the ceiling portion 21 of the cartridge head 20. The bottom surface of the exhaust buffer chamber 255 is constituted by the upper surface of the second member 252 in each gas supply unit 25 adjacent thereto. The sidewall surfaces of the exhaust buffer chamber 255 are connected to the wall surface of the first member 251 in each adjacent gas supply unit 25 and the inner surface of the inner cylinder portion 23 and the central cylinder portion 24 of the cartridge head 20 .

5, the exhaust buffer chamber 255 is formed between the outer cylinder portion 22 and the inner cylinder portion 23 at a portion of the inner cylinder portion 23 constituting the side wall surface of the exhaust buffer chamber 255. [ An exhaust hole 231 communicating with a space formed in each exhaust buffer chamber 255 is formed in correspondence with each exhaust buffer chamber 255.

By the way, the ceiling portion 21 of the cartridge head 20 is formed in a disk shape as described above. 6, the plurality of gas supply units 25 suspended from the ceiling portion 21 are radially arranged from the rotation center side to the outer peripheral side of the substrate mounting table 10 do. With such a configuration, each is arranged along the circumferential direction of rotation of the substrate mounting table 10.

When the gas supply units 25 are radially arranged, the first member 251 in each of the gas supply units 25 has a rectangular shape in plan view, and the first member 251 has an exhaust buffer chamber 255 have a planar shape that widens from the rotation center side of the substrate mounting table 10 toward the outer peripheral side. That is, the exhaust buffer chamber 255 is formed such that the size in the circumferential direction of rotation of the substrate mounting table 10 is gradually widened from the inner circumferential side to the outer circumferential side.

Each of the gas supply units 25 is arranged such that a fan-like or trapezoidal second member 252 is widened from the rotation center side of the substrate mounting table 10 toward the outer peripheral side. Accordingly, the gas exhaust hole 254 including the edge of the second member 252 also has a planar shape that widens from the rotation center side of the substrate mounting table 10 toward the outer peripheral side.

However, as shown in Fig. 7, the gas exhaust holes 254 are not necessarily formed in a plane shape that widens from the rotation center side toward the outer peripheral side, but are formed in a slit shape having substantially the same width from the rotation center side to the outer peripheral side It is acceptable. With this structure, the exhaust conductance at the slit can be made constant from the center to the outer periphery of the treatment chamber. Therefore, when setting the exhaust efficiency as described later, it is only necessary to adjust the structure of the exhaust buffer chamber 255 without considering the conductance of the exhaust hole 254, so that the exhaust efficiency of the entire processing space can be easily adjusted Is advantageous.

(Gas supply / exhaust system)

The cartridge head 20 constructed as described above with the gas supply unit 25 is provided with the gas supply unit 25 shown in Fig. As described, the gas supply / exhaust system described below is connected.

(Process gas supply unit)

The cartridge head 20 is connected to at least one gas supply unit 25a among the plurality of gas supply units 25 constituting the raw material gas supply pipe 311 in the gas supply path 253 in the gas supply unit 25a, Respectively. A material gas supply source 312, a mass flow controller (MFC) 313 as a flow rate controller (flow control unit), and a valve 314 as an open / close valve are provided in the raw material gas supply pipe 311 in this order from the upstream side have. The gas supply path 253 of the gas supply unit 25a to which the source gas supply pipe 311 is connected is provided with a gas supply path 253 on the surface of the wafer W from above the substrate mounting table 10, . The gas supply unit 25a connected to the source gas supply pipe 311 is referred to as a &quot; source gas supply unit &quot;. That is, the source gas supply unit 25a is disposed above the substrate mounting table 10 and supplies the source gas onto the surface of the substrate W from the upper side of the substrate mounting table 10.

The source gas, and a process gas supplied to the wafer (W), for example, obtained by vaporizing the titanium (Ti) metal liquid raw material, TiCl ₄ (Titanium Tetrachloride) containing an element raw material gas (i.e. TiCl ₄ gas )to be. The raw material gas may be any of solid, liquid, or gas at room temperature and normal pressure. When the source gas is a liquid at room temperature and normal pressure, a vaporizer (not shown) may be provided between the source gas supply source 312 and the MFC 313. Here, it is described as a gas.

A gas supply system (not shown) for supplying an inert gas acting as a carrier gas of the raw material gas may be connected to the raw material gas supply pipe 311. Concretely, for example, nitrogen (N ₂ ) gas may be used as the inert gas acting as the carrier gas. In addition to the N ₂ gas, a rare gas such as helium (He) gas, neon (Ne) gas or argon (Ar) gas may be used.

The gas supply unit 25a connected to the source gas supply pipe 311 and the other gas supply unit 25b arranged with one gas supply unit 25c interposed therebetween are provided with a gas supply unit The reaction gas supply pipe 321 is connected to the gas supply path 253. The reaction gas supply pipe 321 is provided with a reaction gas supply source 322, a mass flow controller (MFC) 323 as a flow rate controller (flow rate control unit), and a valve 324 as an open / close valve in this order from the upstream side have. The gas supply path 253 of the gas supply unit 25b to which the reaction gas supply pipe 321 is connected is connected to the gas supply path 253 on the surface of the wafer W from the upper side of the substrate mounting table 10, . The gas supply unit 25b connected to the reaction gas supply pipe 321 is referred to as a &quot; reaction gas supply unit &quot;. That is, the reaction gas supply unit 25b is disposed above the substrate mounting table 10 and supplies the reaction gas onto the surface of the substrate W from the upper side of the substrate mounting table 10.

In the present specification, the &quot; raw material gas supply unit &quot; and the &quot; reaction gas supply unit &quot; may be collectively referred to as a &quot; process gas supply unit &quot;. Any one of the "raw material gas supply unit" and the "reactive gas supply unit" may be referred to as a "process gas supply unit".

The reaction gas is another one of the processing gases supplied to the wafer W, and for example, ammonia (NH ₃ ) gas is used.

A gas supply system (not shown) for supplying an inert gas serving as a carrier gas or a diluting gas of the reaction gas may be connected to the reaction gas supply pipe 321. Concretely, for example, N ₂ gas may be used as the inert gas acting as the carrier gas or the diluent gas, but it is also possible to use a rare gas such as He gas, Ne gas or Ar gas in addition to N ₂ gas May be used.

The gas supply unit 25b to which the reaction gas supply pipe 321 is connected is provided with a plasma generation unit 40 described in detail later. The plasma generating section 40 is for bringing the reaction gas passing through the gas supply path 253 in the gas supply unit 25b into a plasma state.

The gas supply path 253 of the gas supply unit 25a to which the source gas supply pipe 311, the source gas supply source 312, the MFC 313, the valve 314 and the source gas supply pipe 311 are connected, And the gas supply path 253 of the gas supply unit 25b to which the reaction gas supply pipe 321, the reaction gas supply source 322, the MFC 323, the valve 324 and the reaction gas supply pipe 321 are connected ) Constitute a process gas supply section.

(Inert gas supply part)

The gas supply unit 25c interposed between the gas supply unit 25a to which the source gas supply pipe 311 is connected and the gas supply unit 25b to which the reaction gas supply pipe 321 is connected is connected to the gas supply unit An inert gas supply pipe 331 is connected to the gas supply path 253 in the gas supply lines 25a and 25c. The inert gas supply pipe 331 is provided with an inert gas supply source 332, a mass flow controller (MFC) 333 as a flow rate controller (flow control unit), and a valve 334 as an open / close valve in this order from the upstream side have. The gas supply path 253 of the gas supply unit 25c to which the inert gas supply pipe 331 is connected is connected to the gas supply unit 25a and the reaction gas supply pipe Inert gas is supplied to the surface of the wafer W from the upper side of the substrate mounting table 10 on each side of the gas supply unit 25b to which the gas supply unit 25 is connected. The gas supply unit 25c connected to the inert gas supply pipe 331 is referred to as an &quot; inert gas supply unit &quot;. That is, the inert gas supply unit 25c is disposed on the side of the material gas supply unit 25a or the reaction gas supply unit 25b, and is disposed on the surface of the substrate W from the upper side of the substrate mounting table 10 The inert gas is supplied.

The inert gas functions as an air seal sealing the space between the upper surface of the wafer W and the lower surface of the gas supply unit 25c so that the raw material gas and the reactive gas do not mix on the surface of the wafer W . Specifically, for example, N ₂ gas can be used. In addition to the N ₂ gas, a rare gas such as He gas, Ne gas or Ar gas may be used.

The gas supply path 253 of the gas supply unit 25c to which the inert gas supply pipe 331, the inert gas supply source 332, the MFC 333, the valve 334 and the inert gas supply pipe 331 are connected, Thereby constituting an inert gas supply portion.

(Gas exhaust part)

A gas exhaust pipe 341 is connected to the exhaust port 26 provided in the cartridge head 20. [ A valve 342 is provided in the gas exhaust pipe 341. A pressure controller 343 for controlling the internal space of the outer tube 22 of the cartridge head 20 to a predetermined pressure is provided downstream of the valve 342 in the gas exhaust tube 341. In the gas exhaust pipe 341, a vacuum pump 344 is provided on the downstream side of the pressure controller 343.

With this configuration, exhaust from the exhaust port 26 of the cartridge head 20 is performed to the inner space of the outer cylinder 22. At this time, an exhaust hole 231 is formed in the inner cylinder portion 23 of the cartridge head 20 so that the inner side of the inner cylinder portion 23 (i.e., the exhaust buffer chamber 255) And a space formed between the cylindrical portions 23). Therefore, when the exhaust gas is exhausted from the exhaust port 26, the gas flow toward the side where the exhaust hole 231 is formed (i.e., the outer peripheral side of the substrate mounting table 10) And a gas flow from the gas exhaust hole 254 toward the inside of the exhaust buffer chamber 255 (that is, toward the upper side from the gas exhaust hole 254) is generated. Thus, the gas (that is, the source gas, the reactive gas, or the inert gas) supplied on the surface of the wafer W by the process gas supply unit or the inert gas supply unit is supplied to the gas exhaust unit Is exhausted to the upper side of the wafer W through the hole 254 and the exhaust buffer chamber 255 and is discharged from the inside of the exhaust buffer chamber 255 through the exhaust hole 231 and the exhaust port 26 As shown in Fig.

The gas exhaust holes 254 and the exhaust buffer chamber 255 formed between the gas supply units 25 and the exhaust holes 231, the exhaust port 26, the gas exhaust pipe 341, the valve 342, a pressure controller 343, and a vacuum pump 344 constitute a gas exhaust part.

(Plasma generating portion)

The plasma generating section 40 functions as an ICP coil for bringing the reaction gas passing through the gas supply path 253 in the gas supply unit 25b into a plasma state.

9, in order to bring the reaction gas into a plasma state, the plasma generating section 40 is arranged so that the reaction gas to be put in the plasma state passes through the gas supply path 253 in the gas supply unit 25b A plasma generation chamber 410 is formed in the outer periphery of the first member 251 in the gas supply unit 25b and a conductor arranged so as to surround the plasma generation chamber 410 Conductor (420). That is, the reaction gas flowing in the plasma generating chamber 410 passes through the ring of the annular body formed by the plasma generating conductor 420. A cover (not shown) is provided around the plasma generating conductor 420 so that the plasma generating conductor 420 is not exposed to the atmosphere. Here, the description will be omitted for convenience of explanation.

The plasma generating conductor 420 is formed of a conductive material such as copper (Cu), nickel (Ni), iron (Fe), or the like and is formed along the main stream direction of the reaction gas in the plasma generating chamber 410 A plurality of extending main body portions 421 and a connecting conductor portion 422 for electrically connecting the main body portions 421 to each other. That is, the conductor constituting the plasma generating conductor 420 includes a conductor portion serving as the main conductor portion 421 and a conductor portion serving as the connection conductor portion 422.

A plurality of the main body portions 421 are formed in the gas supply unit 25b along the direction in which the sides constituting the corner portion 251a between the first member 251 and the second member 252 extend, Are arranged side by side. That is, the plurality of main conductor sections 421 are arranged side by side from the rotation center side of the substrate mounting table 10 toward the outer peripheral side. It is assumed that the main conductor portions 421 are formed to have substantially the same length.

The connecting conductor portion 422 is disposed at a position where the lower ends of the main conductor portion 421 are connected to each other and at a position where the upper ends of the main conductor portion 421 are connected to each other.

By providing the main conductor portion 421 and the connecting conductor portion 422, the plasma generating conductor 420 is formed so as to surround the plasma generating chamber 410 such that the conductor is directed in the mainstream direction of the gas in the plasma generating chamber 410 As shown in FIG. The wavelength (period) and wave height (amplitude) of the corrugated shape are not particularly limited, and the size of the first member 251 in the gas supply unit 25b and the size of the plasma generation chamber 410 The strength of the magnetic field to be generated in the magnetic field generating portion, and the like.

One of the plurality of the main body portions 421 is located at the conductor end of the plasma generating conductor 420 and is disposed at the outer peripheral side of the first member 251 in the gas supply unit 25b, An input conductor 431 for applying electric power to the plasma generating conductor 420 is connected to one of the main conductor sections 421.

The other part of the plurality of main conductor sections 421 located at the conductor ends of the plasma generating conductor 420, specifically, the outer periphery of the first member 251 in the gas supply unit 25b, for example, An output conductor 432 for extracting the electric power given to the plasma generating conductor 420 is connected to the other main conductor section 421 disposed on the side surface.

The input conductor 431 and the output conductor 432 are directly connected to the main conductor portion 421 constituting the plasma generating conductor 420. [ Therefore, the input conductor 431 and the output conductor 432 are arranged so as to extend upward from the main body portion 421, that is, without securing a space between the input conductor 431 and the output conductor 432 from the outer peripheral side surface of the first member 251 It is possible to arrange it along the outer circumferential side.

Among the input conductor 431 and the output conductor 432, an RF sensor 433, a high frequency power source 434 and a frequency matcher 435 are connected to the input conductor 431.

The high frequency power source 434 supplies the high frequency power to the plasma generating conductor 420 through the input conductor 431.

The RF sensor 433 is provided on the output side of the high frequency power source 434. The RF sensor 433 monitors the information of the traveling wave or reflected wave of the supplied high frequency wave. The reflected wave power monitored by the RF sensor 433 is input to the frequency matcher 435.

The frequency matcher 435 controls the frequency of the high frequency power supplied from the high frequency power supply 434 so as to minimize the reflected wave based on the information of the reflected wave monitored by the RF sensor 433.

That is, the RF sensor 433, the high-frequency power supply 434, and the frequency matcher 435 function as a power feed unit for supplying power to the plasma generating conductor 420.

The input conductor 431 and the output conductor 432 are electrically grounded at their respective end edges. Therefore, the plasma generating conductor 420 is provided at both ends with an electrically grounded portion, and a power feeding portion for supplying electric power is provided between the ground portions.

The plasma generating section 40 mainly includes a plasma generating chamber 410, a plasma generating conductor 420, an input conductor 431 and an output conductor 432, an RF sensor 433, a high frequency power source 434, And a frequency matching unit 435. The frequency matching unit 435 is a frequency matching unit.

The plasma generator 40 having the above-described configuration applies a high-frequency current to the plasma generating conductor 420 through the input conductor 431 and the output conductor 432 as will be described later in detail, A magnetic field is generated in the production chamber 410 so that the reaction gas passing through the plasma production chamber 410 is brought into a plasma state. As a result, the reaction gas in the plasma state is supplied to the space on the lower side of the gas supply unit 25b.

(controller)

As shown in Fig. 2, the substrate processing apparatus according to the first embodiment has a controller 50 for controlling the operation of each part of the substrate processing apparatus. The controller 50 has at least an arithmetic unit 501 and a storage unit 502. The controller 50 is connected to each of the above-described components, and calls a program or recipe from the storage unit 502 in accordance with an instruction from an upper controller or a user, and controls the operation of each component according to the contents. Specifically, the controller 50 includes a heater 11, a rotation drive mechanism 12, an RF sensor 433, a high frequency power source 434, a frequency matcher 435, MFCs 313 to 333, 314 to 334, 342, the pressure controller 343, the vacuum pump 344, and the like.

The controller 50 may be configured as a dedicated computer or a general-purpose computer. (For example, a magnetic tape such as a magnetic tape such as a flexible disk or a hard disk, an optical disk such as a CD or a DVD, a magneto-optical disk such as an MO, a USB memory or a memory A controller 50 according to the present embodiment can be configured by preparing a semiconductor memory 51 such as a card and installing the program in a general-purpose computer by using the external storage 51. [

The means for supplying the program to the computer is not limited to the case where the program is supplied through the external storage device 51. [ For example, the program may be supplied without using the external storage device 51 by using communication means such as the Internet or a dedicated line. The storage unit 502 and the external storage device 51 are configured as a computer-readable recording medium. Hereinafter, they are collectively referred to as simply a recording medium. In the case where the term recording medium is used in this specification, the case where only the storage unit 502 is included alone may include only the external storage apparatus 51 alone, or both cases.

(3) Substrate processing step

Next, a step of forming a thin film on the wafer W by using the substrate processing apparatus according to the first embodiment will be described as one step of the semiconductor device manufacturing method. In the following description, the operation of each unit constituting the substrate processing apparatus is controlled by the controller 50. [

Here, the use of TiCl ₄ gas obtained by vaporizing the TiCl ₄ as a raw material gas (first process gas) and the reaction gas (second process gas) wafer by supplying to, these shifts, and using the NH ₃ gas is used as the (W) An example of forming a TiN film as a metal thin film on a substrate will be described.

(Basic processing operation in the substrate processing step)

First, the basic processing operation in the substrate processing step of forming a thin film on the wafer W will be described.

10 is a flowchart showing a substrate processing process according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

(Substrate carrying-in step S101)

In the substrate processing apparatus according to the first embodiment, first, as the substrate loading step (S101), the substrate loading / unloading port of the processing container is opened, and a plurality of (for example, 5 And the wafers W are loaded and arranged on the substrate mounting table 10. Then, the wafer transfer apparatus is retracted out of the processing vessel, and the substrate loading / unloading port is closed to seal the inside of the processing vessel.

(Pressure temperature adjusting step: S102)

After the substrate carrying-in step (S101), the pressure temperature adjusting step (S102) is performed next. In the pressure temperature adjusting step (S102), after the inside of the processing container is closed in the substrate loading step (S101), a gas exhausting system (not shown) connected to the processing container is operated to control the processing container to a predetermined pressure. The predetermined pressure is a processing pressure capable of forming a TiN film in a film forming step (S103) described later, for example, a processing pressure at which the raw material gas supplied to the wafer W does not self-decompose. Concretely, it is conceivable to set the processing pressure to 50 Pa to 5000 Pa. This processing pressure is maintained in the film forming step (S103) described later.

In the pressure temperature adjusting step (S102), electric power is supplied to the heater 11 embedded in the substrate mounting table 10 to control the surface of the wafer W to a predetermined temperature. At this time, the temperature of the heater 11 is adjusted by controlling the energization state of the heater 11 based on the temperature information detected by a temperature sensor (not shown). The predetermined temperature is a treatment temperature at which a TiN film can be formed in a film formation step (S103) described later, for example, a treatment temperature at which the source gas supplied to the wafer W does not self-decompose. Concretely, it is conceivable that the treatment temperature is from room temperature to 500 占 폚, preferably from room temperature to 400 占 폚. This processing temperature is maintained in the film formation step (S103) described later.

(Film forming step: S103)

After the pressure temperature adjusting step (S102), the film forming step (S103) is performed next. Process operations performed in the film forming process (S103) are largely classified into a relative position moving process operation and a gas supply / exhaust process operation. Details of the relative position movement processing operation and the gas supply / exhaust processing operation will be described later.

(Substrate removal step: S104)

After the film forming step (S103) as described above, the substrate carrying-out step (S104) is performed next. In the substrate unloading step (S104), the processed wafers (W) are taken out of the processing container by using the wafer transferring apparatus in the reverse order to the case of the substrate loading step (S101) already described.

(Process number determining step: S105)

After the wafer W is taken out, the controller 50 determines whether the number of times of the series of steps of the substrate carrying-in step (S101), the pressure temperature adjusting step (S102), the film forming step (S103) It is determined whether or not a predetermined number of times has been reached (S105). If it is determined that the predetermined number of times has not been reached, the process moves to the substrate carrying-in step (S101) to start the processing of the next waiting wafer W. If it is determined that the predetermined number of times has been reached, a series of processes are terminated after performing a cleaning process for the inside of the processing container as necessary. Since the cleaning process can be performed by using a known technique, a description thereof will be omitted here.

(Relative position movement processing operation)

Next, the relative position movement processing operation performed in the film formation step (S103) will be described. The relative position movement processing operation is a processing operation for rotating the substrate table 10 to move the relative positions of the wafers W stacked on the substrate table 10 and the cartridge head 20 relative to each other.

11 is a flowchart showing the details of the relative position movement processing operation performed in the film formation step in Fig.

In the relative position movement processing operation performed in the film formation process (S103), first, the substrate loading table 10 is rotationally driven by the rotation driving mechanism 12 to rotate the substrate loading table 10 relative to the cartridge head 20 (S201). As a result, the wafers W loaded on the substrate table 10 sequentially pass through the lower side of each gas supply unit 25 constituting the cartridge head 20.

At this time, in the cartridge head 20, a gas supply / exhaust process operation, which will be described in detail later, is started. As a result, some from the gas supply path 253 of the gas supply unit (25a) is supplied to the raw material gas (TiCl ₄ gas), between the gas supply unit (25a) and a gas supply unit (25c) A reactive gas (NH ₃ gas) in a plasma state is supplied from the gas supply path 253 in the other gas supply unit 25b arranged in the center. Hereinafter, the process gas supply unit including the gas supply path 253 for supplying the source gas is referred to as a &quot; source gas supply unit &quot; and a gas supply path 253 for supplying the reaction gas Quot; reactive gas supply unit &quot;.

Here, paying attention to any one of the wafers W, when the substrate mounting table 10 starts rotating, the wafer W passes under the gas supply path 253 in the source gas supply unit (S202 ). At this time, a raw material gas (TiCl ₄ gas) is supplied from the gas supply path 253 to the surface of the wafer W. The supplied raw material gas adheres onto the wafer W to form a raw material gas containing layer. The passage time when the wafer W passes under the gas supply path 253 of the raw material gas supply part, that is, the supply time of the raw material gas is adjusted to be, for example, 0.1 second to 20 seconds.

The wafer W passes through the lower part of the gas supply unit 25c for supplying the inert gas (N ₂ gas), and then the reaction gas And passes under the gas supply path 253 in the supply part (S203). At this time, a reaction gas (NH ₃ gas) in a plasma state is supplied from the gas supply path 253 onto the surface of the wafer W. The reaction gas in a plasma state is uniformly supplied on the surface of the wafer W and reacts with the material gas containing layer adsorbed on the wafer W to form a TiN film on the wafer W. The passage time when the wafer W passes under the gas supply path 253 of the reaction gas supply part, that is, the supply time of the reaction gas is adjusted to be, for example, 0.1 second to 20 seconds.

The controller 50 sets the number of times of passage of the raw gas supply portion below the gas supply passage 253 and the passage of the reaction gas supply portion below the gas supply passage 253 to one cycle, (n cycles) is performed (S204). When this cycle is performed a predetermined number of times, a titanium nitride (TiN) film having a desired film thickness is formed on the wafer W. That is, in the film formation step (S103), the relative position movement processing operation is performed to perform the cyclic processing operation in which the process of alternately supplying the different processing gases to the wafer W is repeated. In the film forming step (S103), a TiN film is simultaneously formed on each of the wafers (W) by performing a cyclic processing operation on each of the wafers (W) loaded on the substrate mounting table (10).

When the cyclic process operation is completed a predetermined number of times, the controller 50 terminates the rotational drive of the substrate loading table 10 by the rotational driving mechanism 12, and the substrate loading table 10 and the cartridge head 20 is stopped (S205). Thereby, the relative position movement processing operation is ended. When the cyclic process operation is completed a predetermined number of times, the gas supply / exhaust process operation ends.

(Gas supply / exhaust process operation)

Next, the gas supply / exhaust process operation performed in the film formation process (S103) will be described. The gas supply / exhaust process operation is a process operation for performing upward supply / upward discharge of various gases to / from the wafer W on the substrate mounting table 10.

Fig. 12 is a flowchart showing the details of the gas supply / exhaust process operation performed in the film formation process in Fig.

In the gas supply / exhaust process operation performed in the film formation process (S103), the gas discharge process (S301) starts first. In the gas evacuation step (S301), the vacuum pump 344 is operated and the valve 342 is opened. The pressure controller 343 controls the pressure in the space below the gas exhaust holes 254 formed between the gas supply units 25 to be a predetermined pressure. It is assumed that the predetermined pressure is lower than the pressure in the lower space of each gas supply unit 25. Thus, in the gas evacuation step (S301), the gas in the space below each gas supply unit 25 is supplied to the gas exhaust hole 254, the exhaust buffer chamber 255, the exhaust hole 231, the inner cylinder portion 23, The air is exhausted to the outside of the cartridge head 20 through the space between the outer cylinder 22 and the outer cylinder 22 and the exhaust port 26. [

After the start of the gas evacuation step (S301), the inert gas supply step (S302) is started. In the inert gas supply step S302, the inert gas supply pipe 331 is opened by adjusting the MFC 333 such that the valve 334 in the inert gas supply pipe 331 is opened and the flow rate is a predetermined flow rate. Inert gas (N ₂ gas) is supplied onto the surface of the wafer W from the upper side of the substrate mounting table 10 through the gas supply path 253 of the gas supply unit 25c connected thereto. The supply flow rate of the inert gas is, for example, 100 sccm to 10000 sccm.

The inert gas (N ₂ gas) ejected from the gas supply path 253 of the gas supply unit 25c is supplied to the second member 252 in the gas supply unit 25c, Is uniformly spread in the space between the lower surface of the second member 252 and the upper surface of the wafer W because the lower surface of the second member 252 is parallel to the wafer W on the substrate mounting table 10. The inert gas (N ₂ gas) spreading in the space between the lower surface of the second member 252 and the upper surface of the wafer W is introduced into the second member 252 252 from the gas exhaust hole 254 located at the edge of the wafer W toward the upper side of the wafer W. [ As a result, an air curtain made of an inert gas is formed in the space below the gas supply unit 25c to which the inert gas supply pipe 331 is connected.

After the start of the inert gas supply step (S302), the raw material gas supply step (S303) and the reaction gas supply step (S304) are started.

Source gas supply step (S303) when there, by vaporizing the raw material (TiCl ₄₎ placed to generate the raw material gas (i.e., TiCl ₄ gas) (pre-evaporated). The preliminary vaporization of the source gas may be performed in parallel with the substrate carrying-in step (S101) and the pressure temperature adjusting step (S102) already described. This is because it takes a predetermined time to stably produce the raw material gas.

When the raw material gas is generated, in the raw material gas supply step (S303), the valve 314 in the raw material gas supply pipe 311 is opened and the MFC 313 is adjusted so that the flow rate becomes a predetermined flow rate (TiCl ₄ ) on the surface of the wafer W from the upper side of the substrate mounting table 10 through the gas supply path 253 of the gas supply unit 25a to which the source gas supply pipe 311 is connected. Gas). The supply flow rate of the raw material gas is, for example, 10 sccm to 3000 sccm.

At this time, an inert gas (N ₂ gas) may be supplied as the carrier gas of the source gas. In this case, the supply flow rate of the inert gas is, for example, 10 sccm to 5000 sccm.

The raw material gas performed in the supplying step (S303), the raw material gas (TiCl ₄ gas) ejected from the gas supply path 253 of the gas supply unit (25a), the second member 252 in the gas supply unit (25a) Is uniformly spread in the space between the lower surface of the second member 252 and the upper surface of the wafer W because the lower surface of the second member 252 is parallel to the wafer W on the substrate mounting table 10. And, because it is already disclosed a gas exhaust step (S301), the second source gas (TiCl ₄ gas) spread in the space between the upper surface of the lower and the wafer (W) of the member 252, the second member ( 252 from the gas exhaust hole 254 located at the edge of the wafer W toward the upper side of the wafer W. [ At this time, an air curtain of an inert gas is formed in the space below the adjacent gas supply unit 25c by the start of the inert gas supply step (S302). Therefore, the raw material gas spreading in the space below the gas supply unit 25a will not leak into the space below the adjacent gas supply unit 25c.

Further, in the raw material gas supply step (S303), the raw material gas supplied to the wafer W is exhausted from the gas exhaust hole 254 toward the upper side. At this time, the raw material gas that has passed through the gas exhaust hole 254 flows into the exhaust buffer chamber 255 and spreads into the exhaust buffer chamber 255. That is, the raw material gas supplied onto the wafer W is exhausted through the gas exhaust hole 254 and the exhaust buffer chamber 255 through the stay in the exhaust buffer chamber 255. Therefore, even when a difference occurs in the flow resistance when the raw material gas passes through the gas exhaust holes 254 due to the planar shape of the gas exhaust holes 254, By temporarily retaining the gas, the pressure difference in the inner and outer circumferences due to the difference in flow resistance can be alleviated in the space below the gas supply unit 25c. That is, it is possible to suppress the deviation of the gas exposure amount to the wafer W due to the pressure difference between the inner and outer circumferences in the inner and outer circumferences, and as a result, the inner surface of the wafer W can be treated uniformly.

On the other hand, in the reaction gas supply step (S304) in parallel with the raw material gas supply step (S303), the valve 324 in the reaction gas supply pipe 321 is opened and the MFC 323 ). The reactive gas is supplied from the upper side of the substrate mounting table 10 to the surface of the wafer W through the gas supply path 253 of the gas supply unit 25b to which the reactive gas supply pipe 321 is connected, (NH ₃ gas). The supply flow rate of the reaction gas (NH ₃ gas) is, for example, 10 to 10000 sccm.

At this time, an inert gas (N ₂ gas) may be supplied as a carrier gas or a diluting gas of the reaction gas. In this case, the supply flow rate of the inert gas is, for example, 10 to 5000 sccm.

In the reaction gas supply step (S304), the reaction gas (NH ₃ gas) supplied onto the surface of the wafer W through the gas supply path 253 is brought into a plasma state.

More specifically, the high frequency power source 434 and the frequency matcher 435 are connected to the plasma generating conductor 420 through the input conductor 431 and the output conductor 432 while monitoring the plasma generating conductor 420 with the RF sensor 433. [ Current is applied. When a current is applied, a magnetic field is generated around the plasma generating conductor 420.

At this time, the plasma generating conductor 420 is arranged so as to surround the plasma generating chamber 410 and has a plurality of main conductor sections 421. In other words, a plurality of main body portions 421 are arranged in parallel around the plasma generation chamber 410. Therefore, when a current is applied to the plasma generating conductor 420 to generate a magnetic field around the plasma generating chamber 420, in the plasma generating chamber 410, within the range of the region where the plurality of main body portions 421 are disposed, A composite magnetic field in which a magnetic field generated by the magnet 421 is synthesized is formed.

When the reaction gas passes through the plasma generation chamber 410 in which the composite magnetic field is formed, the reaction gas is excited by the synthetic magnetic field to become a plasma state.

Thus, in the reaction gas supply step (S304), the reaction gas (NH ₃ gas) passing through the plasma generation chamber 410 formed in the gas supply path 253 of the gas supply unit 25b is brought into a plasma state. Thereby, the reaction gas (NH ₃ gas) in the plasma state is supplied to the space on the lower side of the gas supply unit 25b.

In addition, in the reaction gas supply step (S304), the reaction gas is made into a plasma state by using a plurality of main electrode portions 421 uniformly arranged so as to surround the plasma generation chamber 410, The generated plasma is not uneven. In addition, using a composite magnetic field formed in the plasma generation chamber 410 makes it possible to obtain a high-density plasma because it is brought into a plasma state by the dielectric coupling method.

The reaction gas (NH ₃ gas) in the plasma state ejected from the gas supply path 253 of the gas supply unit 25b is supplied to the second member The lower surface of the second member 252 is parallel to the wafer W on the substrate table 10 and spreads evenly in the space between the lower surface of the second member 252 and the upper surface of the wafer W. [ The reaction gas (NH ₃ gas) in the plasma state spreading in the space between the lower surface of the second member 252 and the upper surface of the wafer W is discharged through the gas exhaust process (S301) And is exhausted from the gas exhaust hole 254 located at the edge of the end of the two members 252 toward the upper side of the wafer W. [ At this time, an air curtain of an inert gas is formed in the space below the adjacent gas supply unit 25c by the start of the inert gas supply step (S302). Therefore, the reactive gas in the plasma state spreading in the space below the gas supply unit 25b does not leak into the space below the adjacent gas supply unit 25c.

In the reactive gas supply step (S304), the reactive gas in a plasma state supplied to the wafer W is exhausted from the gas exhaust holes 254 upward. At this time, the reactive gas in the plasma state that has passed through the gas exhaust hole 254 flows into the exhaust buffer chamber 255 and spreads into the exhaust buffer chamber 255. That is, the reaction gas supplied onto the wafer W is exhausted through the gas exhaust hole 254 and the exhaust buffer chamber 255 through the stay in the exhaust buffer chamber 255. Therefore, even when a difference occurs between the internal and external states in the flow resistance when the reaction gas passes through the gas exhaust holes 254 due to the planar shape of the gas exhaust holes 254, the reaction to be discharged in the exhaust buffer chamber 255 By temporarily retaining the gas, the pressure difference in the inner and outer circumferences due to the difference in flow resistance can be alleviated in the space below the gas supply unit 25c. That is, it is possible to suppress the deviation of the gas exposure amount to the wafer W due to the pressure difference between the inner and outer circumferences in the inner and outer circumferences, and as a result, the inner surface of the wafer W can be treated uniformly.

Further, when the exhaust buffer chamber 255 is provided, the exhaust efficiency from the gas exhaust hole 254 can be enhanced as compared with the case where the exhaust buffer chamber 255 is not provided. Therefore, byproducts such as reaction decomposition (for example, ammonia chloride) generated in the space below the gas supply unit 25 are efficiently discharged. That is, in the case where the exhaust buffer chamber 255 is provided, since the reactive decomposition or the like is efficiently discharged, the re-attachment to the wafer W can be suppressed, The film quality of the film is improved.

The above-described steps (S301 to S304) are performed in parallel during the film forming step (S103). However, the starting timing is not necessarily limited to this, and the steps S301 to S304 may be started at the same time, in order to improve the sealing performance by the inert gas.

Described above by performing in parallel the respective steps (S301 to S304), the film-forming step (S103) in the substrate loading that each wafer (W) loaded on the board (10), a gas supply for supplying a source gas (TiCl ₄ gas) the lower space of the unit (25a) gas supply means (25b) for supplying a reaction gas (NH ₃ gas) and a lower space, the plasma state, is passed through each in sequence. Since the gas supply unit 25c for supplying the inert gas (N ₂ gas) is interposed between the gas supply unit 25a for supplying the source gas and the gas supply unit 25b for supplying the reaction gas, The raw material gas and the reactive gas supplied to each of the wafers W do not mix together.

When the gas supply / exhaust process operation is finished, first, the raw material gas supply process is terminated (S305), and the reactive gas supply process is terminated (S306). After completing the inert gas supply process (S307), the gas exhaust process is terminated (S308). However, the end timing of each of these steps (S305 to S308) is the same as the above-described start timing, and each of them may be finished at a different timing or concurrently.

(4) Effects in the first embodiment

According to the first embodiment, the following one or more effects are exhibited.

(a) According to the first embodiment, since the plasma generating portion 40 is provided in the gas supplying unit 25b, in the reactive gas supplying step S304, the reactive gas in the plasma state is supplied to the surface of the wafer W As shown in Fig. Therefore, in the film formation step (S103), the reaction efficiency of the reaction gas to the raw material gas-containing layer adsorbed on the wafer W can be enhanced as compared with the case where the reaction gas is not in the plasma state, W) can be efficiently performed.

(b) Further, according to the first embodiment, the plasma generating portion 40 for bringing the reaction gas into a plasma state is provided with the plasma generating conductor 420 arranged to surround the plasma generating chamber 410, ). The plasma generating conductor 420 includes a plurality of main conductor portions 421 extending along the gas mainstream direction in the plasma generation chamber 410 and a connection conductor portion 422 for electrically connecting the main conductor portions 421 to each other. . That is, the plasma generating conductor 420 is arranged so as to surround the plasma generating chamber 410, and a plurality of main conductor sections 421 are arranged around the plasma generating chamber 410.

In the plasma generating portion 40 having such a configuration, the input conductor 431 and the output conductor 432 are disposed as they are from the main conductor portion 421 located at the conductor end of the plasma generating conductor 420 Frequency electric power is applied to the plasma generating conductor 420 by using the input conductor 431 and the output conductor 432 to make the reaction gas into a plasma state. Therefore, according to the first embodiment, it is not necessary to secure a gap between the input conductor 431 and the output conductor 432 from the outer peripheral side surface of the first member 251. [ In other words, as compared with the case of using the ICP coil of the comparative example (see Fig. 1 (b)), realization of the space saving becomes easy. This is particularly preferable in a single-piece substrate processing apparatus in which the raw gas supply unit 25a, the inert gas supply unit 25c, the reactive gas supply unit 25b, and the inert gas supply unit 25c are arranged so as to be adjacent to each other in order , And the plasma generating portion 40 can be disposed in a space-saving manner.

According to the first embodiment, due to the influence of the composite magnetic field formed within the range of the region where the main conductor portion 421 is disposed in the plasma generating conductor 420, the reactive gas flowing in the plasma generating chamber 410 The plasma state is established. That is, the influence of the composite magnetic field is exerted in the range of the reaction gas flowing in the plasma generation chamber 410 within the range corresponding to the length of the main body portion 421. Therefore, compared with the case where the conductors are disposed to surround the plasma generating chamber 410, for example, the plasma generating chamber 410 is provided with the plasma, State can be realized.

When a plurality of main conductor portions 421 are uniformly arranged so as to surround the plasma generating chamber 410 with respect to the plasma generating conductor 420 forming the composite magnetic field, the plasma generated in the plasma generating chamber 410 And there is no case where it becomes uneven.

In addition, in the first embodiment, since the reaction gas is brought into the plasma state by the dielectric coupling method using the composite magnetic field formed in the plasma generation chamber 410, it becomes easy to obtain a high-density plasma.

As described above, according to the first embodiment, by setting the plasma generating conductor 420 to a new structure different from that of the comparative example, it is possible to save the plasma of the reaction gas while keeping the high plasma density in a space-saving manner .

(c) Further, according to the first embodiment, the plasma generating conductors 420 surrounding the plasma generating chamber 410 are arranged in a waveform shape oscillating in the mainstream direction of the gas in the plasma generating chamber 410 . That is, the plasma generating conductor 420 is arranged so that the corrugated shape continues along the entire circumference of the plasma generating chamber 410, and at the outer peripheral side of the first member 251, And is connected to each of the conductors 432. Therefore, even when the plasma generating conductor 420 is disposed so as to surround the plasma generating chamber 410, the input conductor 431 and the output conductor 432 are provided one by one on the outer peripheral side of the first member 251 So that it is possible to suppress the complication of the configuration of the plasma generating section 40.

&Lt; Second Embodiment of the Present Invention &

Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. Note that, in this case, mainly different points from the first embodiment described above will be described, and description of other points will be omitted.

(Construction of Substrate Processing Apparatus According to Second Embodiment)

In the substrate processing apparatus according to the second embodiment, the configuration of the plasma generating section 40 is different from that in the first embodiment.

13 is a schematic diagram showing a schematic configuration example of a plasma generating portion (ICP coil) according to the second embodiment. The illustrated example schematically shows the outline of the schematic configuration of the plasma generating portion 40 functioning as the ICP coil in the second embodiment, as schematically shown in Fig. Although the schematic drawing is used for simplifying the explanation here, in the second embodiment also, when the substrate processing apparatus is constituted, the plasma generating unit 40 is installed in the gas supply unit 25b and used (See FIG. 9).

A plurality of baffle plates 411 are provided in the plasma generation chamber 410 in order to control the flow direction of the reaction gas flowing in the plasma generation chamber 410. Each of the baffle plates 411 is formed by, for example, a semicircular plate-like member in a plan view. The arc portions of the respective baffle plates 411 are directed in different directions and the baffle plates 411 are arranged at predetermined intervals along the direction of the main gas flow in the plasma generation chamber 410, And is disposed in the chamber 410.

In the plasma generating section 40 having such a configuration, the flow of the reaction gas in the plasma generating chamber 410 is blocked by the baffle plate 411 and meanders. Thereby, the reaction gas flows in the plasma generation chamber 410 while approaching the inner wall surface of the plasma generation chamber 410. At this time, in the plasma generating chamber 410, a magnetic field is formed by the plasma generating conductor 420. This magnetic field is stronger as it gets closer to the inner wall surface of the plasma generation chamber 410 because the plasma generation conductor 420 is disposed so as to surround the plasma generation chamber 410. Therefore, the reaction gas whose flow direction is controlled by the baffle plate 411 is brought into a plasma state while flowing in a relatively strong magnetic field region in the plasma generation chamber 410, and as a result, when there is no baffle plate 411 The plasma density becomes higher.

Further, the baffle plate 411 may be referred to as a meandering structure. In addition, a plurality of baffle plates 411 are collectively referred to as a meandering portion.

Here, the case where the baffle plate 411 is formed in a semicircular shape is taken as an example. However, the shape of the baffle plate 411 is not particularly limited as long as it can control the flow direction of the reaction gas in the plasma production chamber 410. For example, the structure may be such that the surface facing the gas flow is obliquely directed toward the downstream side. With this structure, it is possible to reduce the number of collisions between the plasma and the meandering structure, so that the plasma with high density can be maintained more reliably. The number of the baffle plates 411 in the plasma generation chamber 410 is completely the same and is not particularly limited.

(Effects in the Second Embodiment)

According to the second embodiment, the following effects are exhibited.

(d) According to the second embodiment, the baffle plate 411 is provided in the plasma generation chamber 410 to control the flow direction of the reaction gas flowing in the plasma generation chamber 410, (420). Therefore, it is possible to increase the plasma density of the reaction gas in comparison with the case where the baffle plate 411 is not provided.

&Lt; Third Embodiment of the Present Invention &

Next, a third embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. Note that, here, the difference from the first embodiment is mainly described, and a description of other points is omitted.

(Construction of substrate processing apparatus according to the third embodiment)

In the substrate processing apparatus according to the third embodiment, the configuration of the plasma generating conductor 420a in the plasma generating section 40 is different from that in the first embodiment.

(Outline of Configuration)

14 is a schematic diagram showing a schematic configuration example of a plasma generating portion (ICP coil) according to the third embodiment. The illustrated example schematically shows the outline of the schematic configuration of the plasma generating section 40 that functions as the ICP coil in the third embodiment, as schematically shown in Fig. Although the schematic drawing is used for simplifying the explanation here, in the third embodiment also, when the substrate processing apparatus is constituted, the plasma generating unit 40 is installed in the gas supply unit 25b and used (See FIG. 9).

Although the plasma generating conductor 420a described herein is arranged in a wave shape swinging in the direction of the gas mainstream in the plasma generating chamber 410 as in the case of the first embodiment, unlike the case of the first embodiment, The lengths of the first and second guide grooves 421 differ from place to place. In other words, in the case of the first embodiment, the main conductor sections 421 are formed to have substantially the same length, but the plasma generating conductor 420a in the third embodiment is formed as shown in Fig. 14 (a) An area section 425 having a long main-body section 421 and a wave-like wave-like amplitude (amplitude) A and an area section 426 having a main-body section 421 and a wave- Consists of.

In the plasma generator 40 having such a configuration, the magnetic field exposure amount (passing time, passing distance, etc.) of the reaction gas when the reaction gas passes through the plasma generation chamber 410 is larger than the magnetic field exposure amount The vicinity of the long region 425 and the region 421 near the short region 426 are different. As a result, the plasma density of the reaction gas in the plasma state in the plasma generation chamber 410 also becomes higher when the main body portion 421 passes near the longer region portion 425, The plasma density is lowered when the plasma is passed in the vicinity of the short region 426. This means that, in other words, the lengths of the main conductor portions 421 are different from each other depending on the place, not the uniformity, so that the plasma density of the reaction gas can be controlled on a site-by-site basis.

In the example shown in FIG. 14A, when the region 425 and the region 426 of the plasma generating conductor 420a are arranged with the lower side of the waveform shape as a reference, that is, And the regions 425 and 426 are arranged so as to be aligned with each other. When the plasma generating conductor 420a is formed as described above, a magnetic field is generated on the side closer to the wafer W with respect to the region portion 426. Therefore, in order to bring the reaction gas supplied to the wafer W into a plasma state desirable. However, the plasma generating conductor 420a is not limited to such a structure. As shown in Fig. 14 (b), the region generating portions 425 and 426 are arranged with the upper side of the corrugated shape as a reference .

(Specific Example of Configuration)

Here, the configuration of the plasma generating conductor 420a in the third embodiment will be described more specifically.

In the third embodiment as well, the plurality of gas supply units 25 are arranged radially from the rotation center side of the substrate mounting table 10 toward the outer peripheral side. The plurality of main body portions 421 constituting the plasma generating conductor 420a constitute the corner portion 251a of the gas supply unit 25b in the first member 251 in the gas supply unit 25b Are arranged side by side from the rotation center side of the substrate mounting table 10 toward the outer circumferential side.

The plane shape of the gas supply path 253 of the gas supply unit 25b is not particularly limited and is also particularly limited to the connection point of the reaction gas supply pipe 321 with respect to the gas supply path 253 It is not. Therefore, in the gas supply unit 25b, depending on the plane shape of the gas supply path 253, the position of the connection point of the reaction gas supply pipe 321, and the like, A difficult position may be generated. The distribution of the reaction gas can be predicted based on the plane shape of the gas supply path 253, the position of the connection point of the reaction gas supply pipe 321, and the like.

More specifically, for example, if the gas supply path 253 has a fan shape that widens toward the outer peripheral side of the substrate mounting table 10, the center of rotation of the substrate mounting table 10 The reaction gas is difficult to collect, and the outer peripheral side of the substrate mounting table 10 may easily collect the reaction gas. Further, even if the planar shape of the gas supply path 253 is a rectangular shape, for example, the vicinity of the center of the plane shape of the gas supply path 253 tends to collect the reaction gas, and the vicinity of the end edge of the planar shape The reaction gas may be difficult to collect.

On the other hand, in the case of the plasma generating conductor 420a in the third embodiment, even if there is a deviation in the distribution of the reaction gas in the plasma generating chamber 410, A region 425 having a long main portion 421 and a corrugated wave height (amplitude) A is disposed and a portion where the reaction gas is difficult to collect (for example, the outer peripheral edge of the plasma generation chamber 410) It is possible to arrange the region 426 in which the main body portion 421 is short and the waveform (amplitude) of the waveform is of size B so as to correspond to the region B.

More specifically, for example, when the reaction gas tends to collect toward the rotation center side of the substrate mounting table 10 and the reaction gas is difficult to gather on the outer circumferential side thereof, (Amplitudes) of a magnitude A is arranged on the outer circumferential side and an area section 426 having a magnitude B (amplitude) of a corrugated shape is arranged on the outer circumferential side. That is, the length of the main body portion 421 is configured such that the center of rotation of the substrate mounting table 10 is shorter than the outer peripheral side. When the respective regions 425 and 426 are arranged as described above, the plasma generating unit 40 is configured so that the plasma density at the rotational center side of the substrate mounting table 10 is made lower than the plasma density at the outer peripheral side.

Further, for example, in the case where the reaction gas is easily collected near the center of the plane shape of the gas supply path 253 and the reaction gas is difficult to gather near the edge of the planar end portion (in the vicinity of the wall surface) (Amplitude) of the corrugated shape is larger than the area A of the corrugated shape at the corners of the corners 251a of the corrugated part 251a (i.e., in the vicinity of the center of the plasma generation chamber 410) (Amplitudes) of the corrugated shape is the size B in the region range including the edge of the side of the side (that is, in the vicinity of the edge of the end of the plasma production chamber 410) A portion 426 is disposed. In other words, the length of the main body portion 421 is longer than the center edge of the plasma generation chamber 410, as compared with the end edge. By disposing the respective regions 425 and 426 in this manner, the plasma generation unit 40 is configured so that the plasma density in the vicinity of the center of the plasma generation chamber 410 is made higher than the plasma density at the end edge side.

Therefore, even when a distribution deviation of the reaction gas may occur in the plasma generation chamber 410, the plasma generation section 40 of the third embodiment can increase the plasma density of the portion where the reaction gas is prone to converge, It is possible to suppress the plasma density generated in the plasma generation chamber 410 from becoming uneven.

(Other configuration example)

In the above description, the regions 425 and 426 of the plasma generating conductor 420a are arranged in accordance with whether the reaction gas is easy to collect in the plasma generating chamber 410. However, 426 is not limited to this.

15 is a schematic diagram showing another configuration example of the plasma generation unit according to the third embodiment. The example shown schematically shows the planar shape of the plasma generating conductor 420b and the substrate mounting table 10 in the other configuration example of the third embodiment.

The plasma generating conductor 420b in the illustrated example has an elliptical planar shape extending in the radial direction of the substrate mounting table 10 so as to surround the outer periphery of the first member 251 in the gas supplying unit 25b have.

In the plasma generating conductor 420b having such a structure, when the width of the elliptical shape in the shorter direction is narrowed, plasma is concentrated in the circular arc portion (C portion in the drawing) located near both ends in the longitudinal direction of the elliptical shape . This is because the plasma generating conductor 420b swiftly returns to the arc portion near both ends.

Accordingly, when the planar shape is an elliptical shape, the plasma generating conductor 420b is provided with a region 426 in which the main conductor portion 421 is short and the corrugation shape (amplitude) And an area 425 having a wave shape (wave amplitude) of the magnitude A is disposed on the other portion (that is, the straight line portion constituting the ellipse). By doing so, it is possible to suppress plasma concentration in the vicinities of the both ends by lowering the plasma density at the arc portions near both ends, thereby ensuring plasma uniformity in the radial direction of the substrate mounting table 10 .

When the planar shape of the plasma generating conductor 420b is an elliptical shape extending in the radial direction of the substrate mounting table 10, the lower part of the elliptical arc part (C part in the drawing) It is preferable to establish the relationship between the plasma generating conductor 420b and the substrate mounting table 10 so that the wafer W on the substrate 10 is not passed. In order to prevent the influence of the plasma concentration on the wafer W on the substrate table 10 even if plasma concentration occurs in the arc portion (C portion in the figure).

(Another configuration example)

In the above description, the plasma generating conductors 420a and 420b are divided into two regions, that is, the long region 425 and the short region 426 of the main body portion 421. However, The plasma density of the reaction gas may be divided into three or more regions in order to control the degree of plasma density.

16 is a schematic diagram showing still another example of the configuration of the plasma generating section according to the third embodiment. The illustrated example schematically shows the planar shape of the plasma generating conductor 420c and the substrate mounting table 10 in another constitutional example of the third embodiment.

The plasma generating conductor 420c in the illustrated example has a circular planar shape so as to surround the outer periphery of the first member 251 in the gas supply unit 25b.

In the plasma generating conductor 420c having such a configuration, when the wafer W on the substrate mounting table 10 passes under the plasma generating conductor 420c, the inner and outer circumferential sides of the circular plasma generating conductor 420c, A difference occurs in the passage distance of the wafer W in the middle. This difference in the passing distance may cause unevenness of the film forming process for the wafer W. [

From this, it can be seen that when the planar shape is circular, the plasma generating conductor 420c is divided into three or more region portions, each region portion is assigned to each of the inner periphery side and the outer periphery side, So that the length of the main body portion 421 in the region portion is different. This makes it possible to set the plasma density to the inner circumferential side (the intermediate side and the outer circumferential side), thereby ensuring the uniformity of the plasma with respect to the wafer W regardless of the difference in the passing distance of the wafer W .

(Effects in the Third Embodiment)

According to the third embodiment, the following effects are exhibited.

(e) According to the third embodiment, with respect to the plasma generating conductors 420a, 420b, and 420c arranged in a wave shape swinging in the direction of the gas mainstream in the plasma generating chamber 410, . For this reason, for example, a region 425 having a long corrugated portion 421 and a large corrugation (amplitude) is disposed at a position where the reaction gas is likely to collect, and the main body portion 421 is provided at a position where the reaction gas is difficult to collect. It is possible to arrange a region 426 having a short waveform and a small peak (amplitude). As a result, it is possible to control the plasma density of the reaction gas at different positions on a site-by-place basis, thereby preventing the plasma generated in the plasma generation chamber 410 from becoming uneven.

(f) Particularly, according to the third embodiment, the gas supply unit 25 is provided in a multi-piece substrate processing apparatus radially arranged from the rotation center side to the outer peripheral side of the substrate mounting table 10 It is very useful to apply. This is because in the gas supply unit 25b for supplying the reaction gas to the wafer W, for example, even when the reaction gas is difficult to accumulate on the rotation center side of the substrate mounting table 10 and the reaction gas tends to collect on the outer peripheral side, The plasma density on the side of the rotation center can be made lower than the plasma density on the outer side. This suppresses non-uniformity of the plasma generated in the plasma production chamber 410, and improves the in-plane uniformity of the film formation process for the wafer W.

&Lt; Fourth Embodiment of Present Invention &

Next, a fourth embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. Here, however, the differences from the above-described first to third embodiments are mainly described, and a description of other points is omitted.

(Configuration of Substrate Processing Apparatus According to Fourth Embodiment)

The configuration of the plasma generating conductor 420d in the plasma generating section 40 is different from that of the first to third embodiments in the substrate processing apparatus according to the fourth embodiment.

17 is a schematic diagram showing an example of the configuration of a plasma generating portion (ICP coil) used in the substrate processing apparatus according to the fourth embodiment. The illustrated example schematically shows the outline of the schematic configuration of the plasma generating section 40 that functions as the ICP coil in the fourth embodiment, as schematically shown in Fig. Although the schematic drawing is used for simplifying the explanation here, in the fourth embodiment also, when the substrate processing apparatus is constituted, the plasma generating section 40 is installed in the gas supply unit 25b and used (See FIG. 9).

As shown in Fig. 17A, the plasma generating conductor 420d described here is formed by arranging a plurality of main conductor portions 421 side by side in the same manner as in the first embodiment, and the plasma generating conductor 420d is constituted Unlike the case of the first embodiment, the connecting conductor portion 422 is disposed only at a position where the lower ends of the main body portion 421 are connected to each other. That is, the plasma generating conductor 420d in the fourth embodiment does not include the connecting conductor portion 422 at the position for connecting the upper ends of the main conductor portion 421, Shaped portions, that is, a plurality of pairs of the main body portions 421 connected by the connecting conductor portion 422. The main conductor portions 421 are connected to the main conductor portions 421 by a plurality of U-shaped portions. The height, the width, and the arrangement pitch of the U-shaped portions are not particularly limited, and the size of the first member 251 in the gas supply unit 25b, the size of the first member 251 in the gas supply unit 25b, The strength of the magnetic field to be generated in the chamber 410, and the like.

An input conductor 431 for applying electric power is connected to one of the pair of main conductor portions 421 constituting the U-shaped portion.

An output conductor 432 for extracting a given electric power is connected to the other main body portion 421. That is, the input conductor 431 and the output conductor 432 are connected to each U-shaped portion.

When a power is applied to each of the U-shaped portions through the input conductor 431 and the output conductor 432 in the plasma generating conductor 420d having such a structure, a magnetic field is generated in the plasma generating chamber 410 , The reaction gas passing through the plasma generation chamber 410 is in a plasma state.

At this time, since the plasma generating conductor 420d is divided into a plurality of U-shaped portions, and the respective U-shaped portions are individually arranged, the distance to the substrate mounting table 10 is set to be the same as that of each U- It is possible to easily control it. Further, even when a trouble such as a failure occurs in the plasma generating conductor 420d, it is also possible to replace only the U-shaped part having a trouble, thereby facilitating maintenance.

Further, if the plasma generating conductor 420d is divided into a plurality of U-shaped portions, by connecting different power supply systems or power control systems to each of the U-shaped portions, Power can be supplied individually. That is, by individually controlling the power applied to each U-shaped portion, even when the length of the plurality of main conductor portions 421 in the plasma generating conductor 420d is uniform, the plasma in the vicinity of each U- The density can be varied. Further, as compared with the case where the length of the main body portion 421 is made different, for example, as in the third embodiment, it is possible to easily and precisely and smoothly control the plasma density.

However, the length of each main conductor portion 421 constituting the plasma generating conductor 420d may be different for each U-shaped portion as shown in Fig. 17 (b). By doing so, the plasma density can be controlled by the length of the main body portion 421 as in the third embodiment. Further, since the plasma density is adjusted in accordance with the length of the main body portion 421, it is not always necessary to individually supply power to each of the U-shaped portions, and electric power may be uniformly supplied to each of the U-shaped portions. Therefore, it is possible to suppress the complication of the configuration of the power supply system or the power control system, compared with a case where the power supply is individually supplied to each U-shaped portion.

(Effects in the Fourth Embodiment)

According to the fourth embodiment, the following effects are exhibited.

(g) According to the fourth embodiment, the connection conductor portion 422 is disposed only at a position where the lower ends of the main conductor portion 421 are connected to the plasma generating conductor 420d, and the connection conductor portion 422 is provided on the connection conductor portion 422 And a plurality of pairs of the main body portions 421 connected to each other. That is, the plasma generating conductor 420d is divided into a plurality of U-shaped portions. Therefore, it is possible to individually arrange the U-shaped portions, and it is possible to increase the degree of freedom in arrangement of the plasma generating conductor 420d, compared with the case of the first to third embodiments, The maintenance can be facilitated. In addition, it is possible to easily control the plasma density of the reaction gas at each site, thereby preventing the plasma generated in the plasma generation chamber 410 from becoming uneven, The in-plane uniformity of the treatment can be improved.

<Fifth Embodiment of Present Invention>

Next, a fifth embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. Here, however, the differences from the above-described first to fourth embodiments will be mainly described, and a description of other points will be omitted.

(Configuration of Substrate Processing Apparatus According to Fifth Embodiment)

In the substrate processing apparatus according to the fifth embodiment, the configuration of the plasma generating section 40 is different from that in the first to fourth embodiments.

18 is a side sectional view showing a schematic configuration example of a plasma generating portion (ICP coil) used in the substrate processing apparatus according to the fifth embodiment. Although the schematic diagram showing the side cross-section of the plasma generating section 40 is used here for simplifying the explanation, in the fifth embodiment also, when constituting the substrate processing apparatus, the plasma generating section 40 , And the gas supply unit 25b (see Fig. 9).

The plasma generating portion 40 of the illustrated example has a plasma generating conductor 420e disposed so as to surround the plasma generating chamber 410 through which the reactive gas flows. The plasma generating conductor 420e includes a plurality of main conductor portions 421 extending in the mainstream direction of the reaction gas in the plasma generating chamber 410 and a connecting conductor portion 421 electrically connecting the main conductor portions 421 422). This is similar to the case of the first to fourth embodiments described above.

However, unlike the first to fourth embodiments, the plasma generating conductor 420e described herein may be formed of a conductive material such as copper (Cu), nickel (Ni), and iron (Fe) And the cooling water flows in the pipe. When the cooling water flows in the tube of the plasma generating conductor 420e, the temperature of the plasma generating conductor 420e is adjusted. In other words, the plasma generating conductor 420e in the fifth embodiment has a function as a temperature adjusting section for adjusting the temperature of the plasma generating conductor 420e.

In addition, the plasma generating conductor 420e is disposed in the sealing space 441. An inert gas is supplied into the sealing space 441. As the inert gas, N ₂ gas may be used, but He gas, Ne gas, Ar gas, or the like may be used. A temperature sensor 442 for measuring the temperature of the inert gas is provided in the exhaust path of the inert gas from the inside of the sealing space 441.

In the plasma generator 40 having such a configuration, the temperature of the inert gas exhausted from the inside of the sealing space 441 is set to the temperature sensor 442 in the plasma state of the reaction gas flowing in the plasma generation chamber 410 And the temperature of the plasma generating conductor 420e in the sealing space 441 is monitored. Cooling water is flown in the tube of the plasma generating conductor 420e based on the result of the monitoring to adjust the temperature so that the temperature of the plasma generating conductor 420e is within a predetermined temperature range. That is, in the plasma generating section 40 of the fifth embodiment, the feedback control is performed based on the result of the temperature monitoring of the plasma generating conductor 420e to set the temperature of the plasma generating conductor 420e within a predetermined temperature range .

When the temperature of the plasma generating conductor 420e is maintained within the predetermined temperature range by performing the feedback control, fluctuation of the electrical resistance in the plasma generating conductor 420e can be suppressed. Accordingly, fluctuations in the plasma density can be suppressed, thereby preventing the plasma generated in the plasma generation chamber 410 from becoming uneven, and improving the in-plane uniformity of the film formation process for the wafer W .

Further, in the case where feedback control is performed, for example, in the case where the film thickness of the film forming process on the wafer W has changed, it is assumed that a problem is caused in the plasma generating conductor 420e, It is also feasible to judge that it is a maintenance period.

In the above description, the case where the temperature of the plasma generating conductor 420e is adjusted by flowing cooling water in the tube of the plasma generating conductor 420e is exemplified. However, the temperature adjusting portion is not limited to this, do. As another configuration, for example, the temperature is adjusted by using the gas flowing around the plasma generating conductor 420e.

As for the gas flowing around the plasma generating conductor 420e, it is preferable to use an inert gas as described above because it is possible to suppress the change (for example, oxidation) of the surface state of the plasma generating conductor 420e , It is not necessarily limited to an inert gas, and another gas may be used.

In the above description, the case is described in which the reaction gas in the plasma generation chamber 410 is supplied to the substrate W on the substrate mounting table 10 in the plasma state. However, for example, the plasma generation chamber A plasma shielding plate (not shown) may be provided at the outlet portion 443 of the plasma display panel 410 to constitute a so-called remote plasma. With such a configuration, a neutral radical can be supplied.

(Effects in the fifth embodiment)

According to the fifth embodiment, the following effects are exhibited.

(h) According to the fifth embodiment, since the function of the temperature adjusting section for adjusting the temperature of the plasma generating conductor 420e is provided, the temperature of the plasma generating conductor 420e can be maintained within a predetermined temperature range. Therefore, it is possible to suppress fluctuation of the electric resistance due to the temperature variation of the plasma generating conductor 420e, and thereby to suppress the fluctuation of the plasma density. In other words, by suppressing the temperature fluctuation of the plasma generating conductor 420e, it is possible to suppress unevenness of the plasma generated in the plasma generating chamber 410 and to improve the in-plane uniformity of the film forming process for the wafer W .

&Lt; Another embodiment of the present invention >

Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described above in detail, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and can be variously modified without departing from the gist of the present invention.

For example, in each of the above-described embodiments, the plasma generating section 40 is provided in the gas supply unit 25b, and the reaction gas supplied from the gas supply unit 25b to the wafer W is supplied to the plasma generating section 25b. (40) is in a plasma state, the present invention is not limited thereto. That is, the present invention can be applied to a case where the gas is not limited to the reactive gas but another gas, and the gas is in a plasma state.

For example, in each of the above-described embodiments, the relative positions of the wafers W on the substrate mounting table 10 and the cartridge head 20 are determined by rotating the substrate mounting table 10 or the cartridge head 20 The present invention is not limited to this. That is, the present invention does not necessarily have to be of the rotary drive type described in each embodiment, as long as it moves the relative position between the wafer W and the cartridge head 20 on the substrate mounting table 10. For example, a direct-acting type using a conveyor or the like can be applied in exactly the same manner.

For example, in each of the above-described embodiments, the inert gas supply unit 25c is provided between the source gas supply unit 25a and the reaction gas supply unit 25b. However, It does not. For example, an inert gas supply unit 25c may be provided between the two reaction gas supply units 25b. In this case, instead of the raw material gas supply unit 25a, a supply structure for supplying gas from a portion other than the upper side of the wafer may be provided to supply the raw material gas to the processing chamber. For example, a raw material gas supply hole may be formed in the center of the treatment chamber, and the raw material gas may be supplied from the center of the treatment chamber.

For example, in each of the above-described embodiments, the inert gas supply unit 25c is provided between the source gas supply unit 25a and the reaction gas supply unit 25b. However, It does not. For example, an inert gas supply unit 25c may be provided between the two gas supply units 25a. In this case, instead of the reaction gas supply unit 25b, a supply structure for supplying gas from a portion other than the upper side of the wafer may be provided to supply the reaction gas to the processing chamber. For example, a reaction gas supply hole may be formed in the center of the treatment chamber to supply the reaction gas from the center of the treatment chamber.

For example, in each of the above-described embodiments, TiCl ₄ gas is used as a raw material gas (first process gas) and NH ₃ gas is used as a reaction gas (second process gas) And a TiN film is formed on the wafer W by alternately supplying the TiN film and the TiN film. However, the present invention is not limited to this. That is, the process gas used in the film forming process is not limited to TiCl ₄ gas, NH ₃ gas, and the like, and other types of gases may be used to form other kinds of thin films. Further, even in the case of using three or more types of process gases, the present invention can be applied as long as the film forming process is performed by alternately supplying these gases.

For example, in each of the above-described embodiments, the film-forming process is exemplified as the process performed by the substrate processing apparatus, but the present invention is not limited to this. That is, in addition to the film forming process, a process of forming an oxide film, a nitride film, or a process of forming a film containing a metal may be used. Further, the details of the substrate processing are not limited, and the present invention can be suitably applied to other substrate processing such as annealing, oxidation, nitridation, diffusion, lithography, and the like as well as film formation. The present invention is also applicable to other substrate processing apparatuses such as an annealing apparatus, an oxidizing apparatus, a nitriding apparatus, an exposure apparatus, a coating apparatus, a drying apparatus, a heating apparatus, and a plasma processing apparatus . Further, the present invention may be a combination of these devices. It is also possible to replace some of the configurations of some embodiments with those of other embodiments, and it is also possible to add configurations of other embodiments to the configurations of some embodiments. It is also possible to add, delete, or replace other configurations with respect to some of the configurations of the embodiments.

<Preferred embodiment of the present invention>

Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described.

[Appendix 1]

According to one aspect of the present invention,

A substrate stacking table on which a substrate is stacked,

A processing chamber containing the substrate mounting table,

A gas supply unit for supplying gas into the process chamber,

And a plasma generator for bringing the gas supplied from the gas supply unit into the process chamber into a plasma state,

Lt; / RTI &gt;

Wherein the plasma generating unit comprises:

A plasma generation chamber in which the gas supply unit serves as a channel for gas supplied into the process chamber,

And a plasma generation conductor formed by a conductor arranged to surround the plasma generation chamber

Lt; / RTI &gt;

Wherein the plasma generating conductor comprises:

A plurality of main body portions extending in the mainstream direction of the gas in the plasma generation chamber,

And a plurality of connection conductor portions for electrically connecting the plurality of main conductor portions to each other

And a substrate processing apparatus.

[Note 2]

Preferably,

And the plurality of connection conductor portions are disposed at positions to connect at least the lower ends of the plurality of main conductor portions.

[Note 3]

Preferably,

The plasma generating device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the plasma generating conductor is disposed in a waveform shape oscillating in the mainstream direction of the gas in the plasma generating chamber by having the plurality of main conductor portions and the connecting conductor portions A substrate processing apparatus is provided.

[Note 4]

Preferably,

Wherein one of the plurality of main body portions is connected to an input conductor for applying electric power to the plasma generating conductor,

And the output conductor for taking out the electric power given to the plasma generating conductor is connected to the other one of the plurality of main body parts.

[Note 5]

Preferably,

The plasma generating conductor is provided with a plurality of pairs of the plurality of main conductor portions connected by the connecting conductor portions.

[Note 6]

Preferably,

An input conductor for applying electric power to the plasma generating conductor is connected to one of the main conductor sections constituting one pair of the plurality of pairs of the main conductor sections,

And the output conductor for taking out the electric power given to the plasma generating conductor is connected to the other main body portion constituting one pair of the plurality of pairs of the main body portions. do.

[Note 7]

Preferably,

Each of the input conductors connected to the plurality of pairs is individually connected to a power source,

And each of the output conductors connected to the plurality of pairs is individually connected to the power source.

[Note 8]

Preferably,

The plasma processing chamber is provided with the substrate processing apparatus according to any one of the first to seventh aspects, wherein the plasma processing chamber has a meandering structure for controlling the flow direction of the gas flowing in the plasma generating chamber.

[Note 9]

Preferably,

Wherein the substrate mounting table is configured to be rotatable in a state in which a plurality of substrates are stacked side by side in a columnar shape,

Wherein the processing chamber and the gas supply unit are configured to sequentially supply, to each of the substrates on the rotating substrate loading table, a gas in a plasma state in the plasma generating unit,

The plasma processing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 8, wherein the plasma generating conductor in the plasma generating section is arranged so that the plurality of main conductor sections are arranged from the rotation center side to the outer peripheral side of the substrate mounting table Device is provided.

[Note 10]

Preferably,

Wherein the plurality of main body parts arranged side by side from the rotation center side of the substrate mounting table to the outer peripheral side differ in length along the gas mainstream direction in the plasma generation chamber depending on arrangement positions of the plurality of main body parts. A substrate processing apparatus is provided.

[Appendix 11]

Preferably,

The plasma generating portion is configured to lower the plasma density at the rotation center side to be lower than the plasma density at the outer peripheral side.

[Note 12]

Preferably,

The length of the plurality of main body portions is configured such that the center of rotation side is shorter than the outer peripheral side.

[Note 13]

Preferably,

There is provided a substrate processing apparatus according to any one of &lt; RTI ID = 0.0 &gt; 1 &lt; / RTI &gt; to 12, further comprising a temperature regulator for regulating the temperature of the plasma generating conductor.

[Note 14]

According to another aspect of the present invention,

A substrate stacking step of stacking a substrate on a substrate stacking table contained in the process chamber,

And a conductor disposed so as to surround a plasma generation chamber to be a flow path of the gas to be supplied into the processing chamber, the conductor including a plurality of main conductor portions extending in the mainstream direction of the gas in the plasma generation chamber, A plasma generating step of bringing the gas flowing in the plasma generating chamber into a plasma state by using a plasma generating conductor having a connecting conductor portion for electrically connecting the main conductor portions to each other;

A gas supply step of supplying a gas in a plasma state to the substrate on the substrate mounting table using the plasma generating conductor;

A method for manufacturing a semiconductor device is provided.

[Appendix 15]

According to another aspect of the present invention,

A substrate stacking step of stacking a substrate on a substrate stacking table contained in the process chamber,

And a conductor disposed so as to surround a plasma generation chamber to be a flow path of the gas to be supplied into the processing chamber, the conductor including a plurality of main conductor portions extending in the mainstream direction of the gas in the plasma generation chamber, A plasma generating step of bringing the gas flowing in the plasma generating chamber into a plasma state by using a plasma generating conductor having a connecting conductor portion for electrically connecting the main conductor portions to each other;

A gas supply step of supplying a gas in a plasma state to the substrate on the substrate mounting table using the plasma generating conductor;

A program for causing a computer to execute the program.

[Appendix 16]

According to another aspect of the present invention,

Preferably,

A substrate stacking step of stacking a substrate on a substrate stacking table contained in the process chamber,

And a conductor disposed so as to surround a plasma generation chamber to be a flow path of the gas to be supplied into the processing chamber, the conductor including a plurality of main conductor portions extending in the mainstream direction of the gas in the plasma generation chamber, A plasma generating step of bringing the gas flowing in the plasma generating chamber into a plasma state by using a plasma generating conductor having a connecting conductor portion for electrically connecting the main conductor portions to each other;

A gas supply step of supplying a gas in a plasma state to the substrate on the substrate mounting table using the plasma generating conductor;

Is recorded on a recording medium.

10: substrate stack 20: cartridge head
25, 25a, 25b, 25c: gas supply unit
40: plasma generator 251: first member
252: second member 253: gas supply path
254: gas exhaust hole 255: exhaust buffer chamber
410: plasma generating chamber 411: baffle plate
420, 420a, 420b, 420c, 420d, and 420e:
421: main conductor portion 422: connecting conductor portion
425, 426: area section 431: input conductor
432: Output conductor W: Wafer (substrate)

Claims (22)

A substrate stacking table configured to be rotatable in a state in which a plurality of substrates are stacked in a columnar shape,
A processing chamber containing the substrate mounting table,
A gas supply unit for supplying gas into the process chamber,
And a plasma generator for bringing the gas supplied from the gas supply unit into the process chamber into a plasma state,
Lt; / RTI &gt;
Wherein the plasma generating unit comprises:
A plasma generation chamber in which the gas supply unit serves as a channel for gas supplied into the process chamber,
A plasma generation conductor formed by a conductor arranged to surround the plasma generation chamber,
An input conductor provided along the mainstream direction of the gas for applying electric power to the plasma generating conductor,
An output conductor provided along a mainstream direction of the gas for extracting electric power given to the plasma generating conductor,
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Wherein the plasma generating conductor comprises:
A plurality of main body portions extending in the mainstream direction of the gas in the plasma generation chamber,
And a plurality of connection conductor portions for electrically connecting the plurality of main conductor portions to each other
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Each of the input conductors and the output conductors is connected to the other diaphragm portion and is disposed so as to extend upwardly from the diaphragm portion along the extending direction of the diaphragm portion,
Wherein the processing chamber and the gas supply unit are configured to sequentially supply, to each of the substrates on the rotating substrate mounting table, a gas in a plasma state in the plasma generation unit,
Wherein the plasma generating conductor in the plasma generating section is constituted by arranging a plurality of the main body sections side by side from the rotation center side to the outer periphery side of the substrate mounting table and from the rotation center side toward the outer peripheral side Wherein each of the main body parts arranged is different in length along the gas mainstream direction in the plasma generation chamber depending on the position of the substrate. The method according to claim 1,
The plasma generating conductor has the connecting conductor portion disposed at a position to connect at least the lower ends of the main conductor portion so that the conductor is arranged in a waveform shape oscillating in the mainstream direction of the gas in the plasma generating chamber, And a plurality of pairs of U-shaped portions which are pairs of the main conductor portions connected by the connecting conductor portion. 3. The method of claim 2,
Wherein the plasma generating conductor has the connection conductor portion disposed at a position to connect the lower ends of the main conductor portion and the connection conductor portion disposed at a position to connect the upper ends of the main conductor portion, And is arranged in a wavy shape oscillating in the mainstream direction of the gas in the production chamber. The method of claim 3,
Wherein the input conductor is connected to one of the main conductor portions located at a conductor end of the plasma generating conductor,
And the output conductor is connected to another one of the main conductor portions located at the conductor ends of the plasma generating conductor. 3. The method of claim 2,
Wherein the plasma generating conductor has the connection conductor portion disposed only at a position where the lower ends of the main conductor portions are connected to each other so that the plasma generating conductor has a plurality of U- . 3. The method of claim 2,
A sealing space configured to dispose the plasma generating conductor,
And a temperature adjusting unit for supplying an inert gas into the sealed space and adjusting the temperature of the plasma generating conductor by using the inert gas flowing around the plasma generating conductor. The method according to claim 1,
Wherein the plasma generating conductor comprises:
The connection conductor portion disposed at a position connecting the lower ends of the main conductor portions and the connection conductor portion disposed at a position connecting the upper ends of the main conductor portions, In a wobbling shape in the mainstream direction of the substrate processing apparatus. 8. The method of claim 7,
One of the main body portions is connected to an input conductor for applying electric power to the plasma generating conductor,
And an output conductor for taking out electric power given to the plasma generating conductor is connected to the other of the main body portions. The method according to claim 1,
Wherein the plasma generating conductor has the connection conductor portion disposed only at a position where the lower ends of the main conductor portions are connected to each other so that the plasma generating conductor has a plurality of U- . 10. The method of claim 9,
The input conductor is connected to one of the main conductor portions constituting the U-shaped portion,
And the output conductor is connected to the other main body portion constituting the U-shaped portion. 10. The method of claim 9,
Each of the input conductors connected to the plurality of U-shaped portions is connected to a power source via an input common line,
And each of the output conductors connected to the plurality of U-shaped portions is connected to the power supply via an output common line. 10. The method of claim 9,
A sealing space configured to dispose the plasma generating conductor,
And a temperature adjusting unit for supplying an inert gas into the sealed space and adjusting the temperature of the plasma generating conductor by using the inert gas flowing around the plasma generating conductor. delete delete The method according to claim 1,
Wherein the plasma generating portion is configured such that the center of rotation has a shorter length of the main body portion than the outer peripheral side and the plasma density at the rotation center side is made lower than the plasma density at the outer peripheral side. delete 16. The method of claim 15,
Wherein the plasma generation chamber has a meandering structure for controlling the flow direction of the gas flowing in the plasma generation chamber. delete delete 16. The method of claim 15,
A sealing space configured to dispose the plasma generating conductor,
And a temperature adjusting unit for supplying an inert gas into the sealed space and adjusting the temperature of the plasma generating conductor by using the inert gas flowing around the plasma generating conductor. A substrate stacking step of stacking a plurality of substrates side by side on a substrate stacking table,
And a conductor disposed so as to surround a plasma generation chamber to be a flow path of the gas to be supplied into the processing chamber, the conductor including a plurality of main conductor portions extending in the mainstream direction of the gas in the plasma generation chamber, A plasma generating step of bringing the gas flowing in the plasma generating chamber into a plasma state by using a plasma generating conductor having a connecting conductor portion for electrically connecting the main conductor portions to each other;
A gas supply step of sequentially supplying gas, which has been brought into a plasma state, to each of the substrates on the rotating substrate stacking table using the plasma generating conductor
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In the plasma generating step,
A plurality of said main body parts are arranged side by side from the rotation center side to the outer peripheral side of said substrate mounting table and the main body parts arranged from the rotation center side to the outer peripheral side of the above- , And the length along the gas mainstream direction in the plasma generation chamber is different depending on the arrangement place,
And an output conductor connected to the plasma generating conductor and provided along the mainstream direction of the gas, the plasma generating conductor being connected to the plasma generating conductor and supplying power to the plasma generating conductor from an input conductor provided along the mainstream direction of the gas, And the electric power given to the conductor is taken out, whereby the gas flowing in the plasma generation chamber is brought into a plasma state,
Wherein the input conductor and the output conductor are connected to the other main conductor portions and are connected to the main conductor portion in such a manner as to extend upwardly from the main conductor portion along a direction in which the main conductor portion extends, Way. By computer,
A substrate stacking step of stacking a plurality of substrates side by side on a substrate stacking table,
And a conductor disposed so as to surround a plasma generation chamber to be a flow path of the gas to be supplied into the processing chamber, the conductor including a plurality of main conductor portions extending in the mainstream direction of the gas in the plasma generation chamber, A plasma generating step of bringing the gas flowing in the plasma generating chamber into a plasma state by using a plasma generating conductor having a connecting conductor portion for electrically connecting the main conductor portions to each other;
A gas supply step of sequentially supplying gas, which has been brought into a plasma state, to each of the substrates on the rotating substrate stacking table using the plasma generating conductor
To the substrate processing apparatus,
The plasma generation process may be performed by,
A plurality of said main body parts are arranged side by side from the rotation center side to the outer peripheral side of said substrate mounting table and the main body parts arranged from the rotation center side to the outer peripheral side of the above- , And the length along the gas mainstream direction in the plasma generation chamber is different depending on the arrangement place,
An output conductor which is connected to the plasma generating conductor and supplies power to the plasma generating conductor from an input conductor provided along the mainstream direction of the gas and which is connected to the plasma generating conductor and is provided along the mainstream direction of the gas, The plasma generating chamber is provided with a plasma generating chamber for generating electric power given to the plasma generating conductor,
Each of the input conductors and the output conductors is connected to the other main body portion and connected to the main body portion so as to extend upwardly from the main body portion along a direction in which the main body portion extends,
And the program is executed by the substrate processing apparatus.

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